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Program offers alternative for youth who commit misdemeanors

Anthony Wallace

August 05, 2020 |

Cronkite News - Arizona PBS |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

Choose 180 channels Seattle-area young people into an alternative to court and jail when they commit relatively minor offenses. This "offramp" from the traditional justice system, serving a disproportionately Black and brown clientele, helped 400 clients in 2019, 87% of whom did not commit new offenses. Research shows such diversion programs have a better track record for preventing future crimes. A Choose 180 "sentence" comes in the form of a workshop introducing young people to mentors and giving them a chance at the stability and frame of mind they need to seek more lasting change in their lives.

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Searching with the Mothers of Mexico's Disappeared

Ana Karina Zatarain

August 05, 2020 |

The New Yorker |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Mexico, Culiacan, Sinaloa

Las Rastreadoras de El Fuerte is a group of about 200 members, mostly mothers whose children are among the more than 73,000 people who have disappeared and presumably were murdered in Mexico's long drug war. Las Rastreadoras search the countryside for the unmarked graves of the missing, hoping to find their own children, often finding others'. In six years, they have found 198 bodies, 120 of whom were identified. What began spontaneously as one woman's search, then a group effort, has become a way to heal from the pain of what a psychologist calls "ambiguous loss" as well as an act of political activism.

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The birth of the Black is Beautiful movement

Precious Adesina

August 03, 2020 |

BBC |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

The African Jazz-Art Society & Studios (AJASS) kickstarted the Black is Beautiful movement with 1960s fashion shows elevating Black models with dark skin and full bodies, who agreed to keep their hair natural year-round. As events increased and photographs spread, and famous Black women adopted their style, natural hair became more normalized. The founders recently released a song called We Will Breath to empower black people to “take back control of the narrative surrounding their lives.” The group continues to inspire Black entrepreneurs, such as Rihanna, and encourages people to support Black businesses.

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The growing global movement to end outdoor advertising

Steve Rushton

August 03, 2020 |

Equal Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: France

There are 29 Resistance to Advertising Aggression (RAP) groups working in France to ban outdoor advertising such as billboards. The groups worked with the mayor in the city of Grenoble to cancel a contract for 326 outdoor ads. While not all contracts can be changed, RAPs are particularly focused on stopping digital signs because the energy required to run them is harmful to the environment. Groups in the United Kingdom, São Paulo, New Delhi, and Tehran have won campaigns to remove billboards and other outdoor ads, which research shows reinforce sexist and capitalist ideologies.

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How Hawaii's New Voting System Could Help Disabled Voters

Blaze Lovell

August 03, 2020 |

Honolulu Civil Beat |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Hawaii

Voters with disabilities in Hawaii have more options for voting than in most other states. Electronic ballots in particular, which can be paired with assistive technology, allow voters more freedom and independence. Any voter with a disability can request a ballot be emailed to them as an HTML file. Voters must sign a privacy waiver and ballots have to be printed and signed. Hawaii is one of the few states that allows voters to scan their signed ballots and return them by email, as well as by mail or dropped in an official ballot box. More voter outreach is needed to make people aware of this option.

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19th Amendment: The six-week 'brawl' that won women the vote

Elaine Weiss

August 03, 2020 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tennessee

Three generations of activists marched, protested, lobbied, and campaigned for more than seven decades to win the right to vote for American women. In 1920, national and local activists worked to convince Tennessee legislators to support the 19th amendment and become the 36th and final state needed to ratify it. Local suffragists were the most visible forces, lobbying their representatives to support the amendment, while national activists built alliances, identified legislators known to take bribes, and exerted political pressure at all levels of government, including among presidential candidates.

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In Staten Island, A Burgeoning Youth-Led Movement For Social Justice Is Afoot

Chad Small

August 01, 2020 |

Gothamist |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Staten Island, New York

The Young Leaders of Staten Island (YSLI) was created in Staten Island to fight for social justice after young residents of the borough felt the local response to George Floyd's murder was not enough. YSLI mobilized hundreds of protesters to march in Staten Island's largest public protest of 1,800 people. The group has demanded justice through police reform and beyond, hosting voter registration and census completion drives. Their efforts have resulted in 125 people registering for the census and 85 people to vote.

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How Urban Planning Keeps Cities Segregated—and Maintains White Supremacy

Julian Agyeman

July 31, 2020 |

Yes! Magazine |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Urban planning policies can lead to greater racial segregation, sometimes intentionally. While older policies could be explicitly racist, today policies such as zoning, which designates land for residential or industrial use, effectively excludes communities of color, immigrants, and households with lower incomes. Residential segregation leads to education, income, and health disparities. Minneapolis ended single-family zoning so lots can be converted to more affordable duplexes and triplexes and is working towards requiring new apartment projects to reserve units for low- to moderate-income households.

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How A COVID-19 ‘Rapid Response Team' In Chicago Is Working To Fix Decades Of Neglect In Black, Latinx Communities

Dorothy Tucker Samah Assad Carol Thompson

July 31, 2020 |

WBBM-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Spurred by the high concentration of COVID-19 deaths in Black and Latinx neighborhoods on Chicago's South and West sides, city government teamed with multiple community groups to form a Racial Equity Rapid Response Team to distribute protective gear, food, financial aid, and other help in the hard-hit neighborhoods. The help included more than 1 million masks, 6,000 boxes of food, 250,000 information flyers, laptops and free internet access, and $380,000 to help pay rent and utilities. The deaths and desperate need for help stem directly from decades of racial disparities in food and health care access.

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We Know How to Fix Student Debt

David Byrne

July 31, 2020 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

A study found that students without debt ended up with a higher income than students with debt, an overall benefit to the larger economy. In the U.S., "44.7 million American adults are saddled with student debt totaling $1.6 trillion.” This article explores what other countries like Germany, New Zealand, and South Korea, among others have done to lower the cost of university tuition and thus student debt.

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